Teacher Appreciation Banquet
Henry Thompson put down his bowl of noodles and pulled Helen Parker to sit beside him. "Mother, I have some good news to share. I’ve become the Top Scholar!"
Helen Parker stared blankly for a moment, then suddenly reached out to touch Henry’s face.
Helen’s hands were rough, almost like sandpaper, scraping his face until it stung. But Henry didn’t pull away.
Helen’s face showed a mix of sorrow and joy. She muttered, "Top Scholar...? My son is the Top Scholar!? Hahaha, this is wonderful!"
Suddenly, Helen jumped up and dashed out into the yard, waving her arms and shouting with joy, "This is amazing! My Shimao is the Top Scholar! Shimao, your mother is now the Mother of the Top Scholar, and I’ll enjoy a good life with you! Shimao..."
Henry leaned against the doorway, watching Helen bounce and skip around the yard in delight. A trace of sadness flickered in his eyes as he thought of his biological mother, Mrs. Thompson.
So many years had passed. Though Henry never had the means to look for Mrs. Thompson, he firmly believed she’d been abducted and was still alive somewhere!
"Once I become an official in the court, I’ll finally have the power to search for you, Mother..." Henry exhaled deeply, gazing up at the crescent moon in the night sky, his expression resolute. "Mother, no matter what, I’ll find you! I was so foolish before, always causing trouble and even urging Father to hit you. But after you disappeared, I realized—only a real mother loves her son truly and wholeheartedly. When I find you, I’ll take good care of you. You’ll never have to quarrel with others over a scallion or a piece of tofu, never have to worry about being beaten, and never go hungry or cold again..."
As Henry spoke, tears streamed from the corners of his eyes. He wiped them away fiercely with his sleeve. "Mother, even to the ends of the earth, I will bring you home!"
===
Royal Academy of Mathematics.
“A teacher appreciation banquet?” Lily Evans was sitting inside, grading assignments, when Lola came in carrying an invitation.
Lola nodded, “It was personally delivered by the new Top Scholar yesterday. He’s still outside waiting.”
“Top Scholar?” Lily opened the invitation and saw that the first name listed among the hosts was Henry Thompson.
“So it really was Henry Thompson who won Top Scholar. Tsk.” Lily recalled that yesterday at the teahouse, most of the bets had been placed on Henry Thompson.
Sure enough, Henry Thompson lived up to expectations and became Top Scholar. It seems his grades have always been outstanding, which is why so many people bet on his success.
“Invite him in.” Lily set down the invitation after reading it and spoke to Lola.
Lola got up to invite the guest. Soon after, a very young man entered, dressed in a faded linen robe. Though young, he carried himself with a mature and steady air.
“Student Henry Thompson, greetings to Teacher Lily Evans.” Henry bowed deeply, showing great respect to Lily Evans.
“Please, have a seat.” Lily looked at the young man with satisfaction. “I never expected Phoenix Academy’s first Top Scholar to be so young. Truly, heroes emerge from youth.”
Henry Thompson smiled slightly. “It’s all thanks to the guidance of the teachers at Phoenix Academy, especially Dean Lily Evans. The mock exams you devised helped our students achieve gold in every test, far surpassing other academies.”
Lily Evans waved her hand with a smile. “Those mock exams were just icing on the cake. Achieving such success at your age is due to your own hard work, so you shouldn’t be too modest.”
Henry Thompson said, “After gaining our titles, none of us dared forget Dean Lily Evans’s teachings. I may be unworthy, but I’ve come on behalf of my classmates to invite you to the teacher appreciation banquet as a token of our gratitude.”